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Strength of Ten

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By the grace of God, working the Steps and using the Tools, I have been free from the compulsion to overeat for four years, one day at a time. And I would like to keep it that way.

Recently, I was traveling: I went through seven time zones, which challenged my routine. I know this is a program of action and I need to have a plan in place for different circumstances. For me, one constant has been OA literature. I always have something to read with me.

A quotation from For Today zapped me! “A single arrow is easily broken, but not ten in a bundle” (p. 60). Sitting at an airport gate, I mused about how wonderful it would be to hear an announcement that there was a meeting of friends of Bill and Dr. Bob starting somewhere in the terminal building. There I’d be able to meet members of our Fellowship, maybe even in a group of ten. Higher Power quickly reminded me that la-la land doesn’t exist and flooded me with a series of questions grounded in reality:

  • Aren’t you able to have a “meeting on the go” right now using the Lifeline stuffed in your purse?
  • Can you find ten things to be grateful for, to increase the strength of your bundle of arrows?
  • Can you bring to mind ten slogans we hear over and over, words that help us stay in recovery?
  • Can you picture the faces of ten members of your home group in your mind’s eye?
  • Can you remember the online nicknames of ten people in virtual meetings?
  • Can you text that wonderful sponsor of yours and check in?
  • And, really, can you find some service to do, to give away what you have so graciously been given? Maybe even write an article of experience, strength, and hope to share with others?

Before I knew it, my flight had been called, and in some time zone or another I had lived another day of abstinence. Thank you to all who make our literature possible. Blessings in your journeys of recovery. Together we get better.

— K., Canada

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